All 36 economists surveyed by Reuters had expected the central bank to hold rates, with a majority forecasting no change until at least July next year.
Money markets are pricing in a hold for the rest of the year. 0#CADIRPR
"We continue to believe the Bank of Canada will remain on the sidelines for the rest of this year, but significant changes to the outlook for oil prices or trade with the US could easily change that view," Royce Mendes, managing director at Desjardins, wrote in a note.
Macklem dropped comments he made in June, when he said there could be a need for consecutive rate increases if inflation spiked.
The BoC has previously said the current phenomenon of high inflation and weak growth has put policymakers in a bind.
Weak growth would normally argue for lower rates to support the economy, but easing policy could add to inflation pressures while prices remain elevated.
The rate of 2.25% sits at the lower end of the bank's estimated neutral range and is generally considered sufficiently accommodative to provide modest support to the economy without fuelling inflation.
"The Bank of Canada has shifted from standing ready, to act, to now standing by," said Andrew DiCapua, principal economist at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce.
A weaker loonie and renewed strength in commodity prices will make the Bank think twice before lowering interest rates, he said, but also added that expectations of a rate hike have now largely evaporated.
The evolution of Canada's trade relationship with the United States and the war in the Middle East remain the two most important risks to the outlook for inflation, the bank said in a quarterly monetary policy report.
"We've been looking through the direct effects of higher oil prices on inflation, but the longer they remain elevated, the bigger the risk they spill over to other goods and services. As we have said before, we will not let higher oil prices become persistent inflation," said Macklem.
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